CROWN POINT | The Indiana Attorney General and Lake County Prosecutor said Wednesday they have no legal authority to remove from office a county councilman found guilty of tax fraud until his sentencing.
An error in a 2005 law that was supposed to require public officials to leave office after they are found guilty, likely means County Councilman Will Smith Jr. will not resign before his Jan. 9 sentencing unless his colleagues talk him into it.
Smith couldn't be reached for comment. Council President Elsie Franklin, D-Gary, said she cannot afford to lose Smith while the council is mulling important legislation to create a 1 percent county income tax.
